INDIANAPOLIS — Emerson Axsom isn’t new to the USAC national midget scene, but this week at the Driven2SaveLives BC39, he was fresh blood on the Keith Kunz Motorsports team.
In his first pair of outings with the renowned team — both at The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway against a 72-car field — Axsom recorded two podium finishes.
“Honestly, you never know what to expect when you get into a new race car. It took me a minute to get my confidence up,” Axsom admitted after finishing third during his prelim on Friday night.
But the confidence was clear on Saturday, as the 19-year-old held his ground out front against veteran drivers Justin Grant and Thomas Meseraull. He traded the lead back and forth with the RMS Racing duo, ultimately settling for a runner-up finish behind Grant.
“It sucks to run second, but in the grand scheme of things, it was an awesome event,” Axsom said.
It was also his 19th birthday on Saturday. He was the only driver in the top five under 26 years old.
Seavey: ‘We Had To Do Stuff We’ve Never Done Before’
All weekend long, drivers made it clear that it would be difficult to finish well at the BC39 if they started at the back. While true for most, Abacus Racing’s Logan Seavey broke the mold with his run from 12th to third.
“Places this small are really tough. Doors have to open. It’s really hard to make moves when everyone is two and three-wide,” Seavey said.
Nonetheless, the USAC national midget points leader made it happen.
“We had to do stuff we’ve never done before to get around this place,” Seavey explained. “We were pretty timid to do stuff like that and it kind of bit us. We should’ve stepped outside of our box earlier in the week and got our car a little better. Finally, today, we threw a lot of stuff at it that we’ve never done and it worked there in the feature.
“I was able to be comfortable and be fast and make moves that I needed to make.”
T-Mez Riles Up The Field
There were two drivers who had a few words to say about Meseraull following Saturday night’s 39-lap finale — Axsom and fourth-place finisher Tanner Thorson.
“You see all these veterans getting mad at the young kids and then you also see a guy like T-Mez doing a slide or die and it’s pretty hypocritical,” Axsom said.
He was taken high by Meseraull when the No. 7x threw a slider and cut off the No. 68 on lap 14.
Meanwhile, fast-moving Thorson was caught behind Meseraull when the RMS Racing driver climbed the wall on lap 32, hurting the No. 88’s run into the top five.
“I felt like I had a car at least top two. I was just pacing with those guys and getting ready to make my move, and then typical T-Mez…wanted to zig-zag down the straightaway,” Thorson said. “Ruined our night of running on the podium. Pretty disappointed.”
But for Meseruall, who earned his first USAC national midget win of the year during Thursday night’s prelim, he felt all-or-nothing was appropriate, considering the circumstances.
“You just kind of get in war,” Meseruall said. “For 20 grand, I was giving it my all…It’s tough to keep your emotions and your foot off the gas when the stakes are high and when you’re at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.”
It Wasn’t Brady Bacon’s Year
Brady Bacon came into the fifth running of the BC39 as the only driver with a shot to be a repeat winner. And leaving The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he’s still a one-time victor at the hallmark USAC event.
The TKH Motorsports driver was plagued with problems from start to finish.
While he won his qualifier during Friday’s preliminary action, the No. 21h was unable to start the A main due to a broken battery wire. As a result, he was forced to run a C main on Saturday. Bacon proceeded to finish second in the C main, but was involved in a three-car wreck in the B main.
In the Last Chance Showdown, he was caught in another incident that heavily damaged his car, ending his night.
Other Notes
USAC Silver Crown racer Taylor Ferns made an appearance at the BC39 on Saturday to take part in a Car IQ Fab Four autograph session. She then made her way to the flag stand to volunteer her flagging services during a few features early in the night.
The stands at The Dirt Track were brimming with color during the $20,039-to-win finale, indicating a packed house at the speedway.
Before the start of the A main on Saturday, after the cars had been pushed on track, Indianapolis Motor Speedway President Doug Boles and Tim Clauson jogged around the quarter-mile dirt oval and stopped to fist bump every driver.
Gavin Miller, who finished 20th in the A main, received the Rookie of the Race award.